When the Federal Government decided to reopen the Kitsilano Coast Guard Station in 2016 after being shuttered for 3 years, a functional, robust and aesthetic upgrade was required to meet the goals of the Canadian Coast Guard. The facility will, in addition to providing search-and-rescue, conduct emergency training for responders, including indigenous groups.

“The Coast Guard is renovating the Kitsilano Base to further improve the services to mariners in the Greater Vancouver area, as announced in Budget 2016. Renovations will include improvements to the marine infrastructure as well as significant renovations to the outside of the building.”

The project objectives required an envelope upgrade to withstand a renewed lifecycle in an exposed marine setting. Perched above a marina, the building is fully exposed on three sides. Careful consideration was given to the suitability of each building component for this challenging location: long-lasting composite and zinc-accented rainscreen cladding, high-performance curtainwall glazing, and insulation & membranes are detailed to surmount changeable marine weather conditions and meet prescribed energy targets for the building. RATIO’s design plan will replace an aged face-sealed metal composite panel system with a contemporary fibre cement composite rainscreen system. This provides a significant update to the building’s weather-sheding and energy performance.

Our Approach

We collaborated with the Fisheries & Oceans Canada at each stage of the design process to meet the technical requirements and design expectations. Regularly scheduled coordination meetings with all stakeholders resulted in common understanding through collaboration and communication. RATIO paid careful attention to maximizing project value while maintaining the highest standards in building envelope design for the given marine location.